Afx News

South Korea's Samsung Heavy Industries Co, said it has secured new orders worth a total of $2.41b. The company said it won a $1.15b dollar contract to build two semi-submersible floating drilling rigs by September 2010 for a Russian client. Separately, clients in Africa and in Americas ordered two oil drillships worth 1.26 billion dollars which will be delivered by May 2011, it said. Source: AFX

According to reports, Indian engineering and construction firm Larsen & Toubro Ltd said it has won a repeat order worth over $70m to build two ships for Netherlands-based RollDock BV. The Dutch shipping company has also signed an agreement that includes options for more vessels of the same series to be built later this year, which will be delivered by May 2010, L&T said in a release. L&T entered the shipbuilding business in April 2006, by securing an order from the Dutch firm. Source: AFX News Limited

Singapore conglomerate Keppel Corp its unit Keppel Offshore & Marine's subsidiary, Keppel Singmarine Pte Ltd, has won four contracts from four companies to build six offshore support vessels and a pipelay vessel. The vessels are scheduled for delivery in the second half of 2009 and first half of 2010. Source: AFX

ABG Shipyard said it has won a $360m order from Thailand-based Precious Shipping Public Co Ltd, taking ABG's total order book to 55.6 bln rupees. Source: AFX News

China National Offshore Oil Corp, the parent of CNOOC Ltd, said it has set an oil and gas output target for 2010 of 48 mln-50 mln tons of oil equivalent. CNOOC, the country's largest offshore oil and gas producer, said overseas oil and gas output is expected to hit 20-25 mln tons in 2010. CNOOC had oil and gas output of 40.33 mln tons of oil equivalent in 2006 with overseas output at 5.57m tons, it said in a statement. CNOOC has invested in 45 overseas oil and gas blocks in 10 countries including Nigeria, Australia, Kenya and Indonesia. Source: AFX News

Shipping group CMB said its unit Bocimar International has sold its liquified natural gas (LNG) Panamax vessel Jiangnan 2346 for $65m. The group will realise a capital gain on 32 mln usd from the sale on delivery of the vessel, scheduled to take place in the course of the first quarter of 2008. Bocimar has ordered in a joint venture with Wah Kwong two newbuilding Handymax vessels from Chengxi Shipyard, China. The delivery of the vessels is scheduled to take place in March and August 2009. Source: AFX

Hyundai Heavy Industries Co said it secured orders for 31 vessels worth $3.3b in May. According to AFX News, it is the largest ever monthly shipbuilding orders total. The figure, which beat the previous record of $2.6b set a year ago, includes its affiliate Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries' orders for seven ships worth $700m. In the five months to May, Hyundai Heavy and Hyundai Samho's orders totaled $8b for 82 ships. Driven by a rise in international trade and freight rates, the company expects more new orders in the coming months. As of May, Hyundai Heavy and Samho's backlog of orders has reached 290 ships,worth $28b, which will keep its shipyard busy for at least 3.5 years. Source: AFX News

Island Oil and Gas PLC said it spudded a gas appraisal well (49/23-2) in the Celtic Sea, offshore Ireland. The well is the first of this year's drilling program. It is also the company's second well at the Old Head of Kinsale and follows on from the gas discovery with its operated well 49/23-1 in 2006. The company plans to produce first gas in the fourth quarter of 2008. Source: AFX

TUI AG has ordered eight container ships to expand its shipping division, AFX reported. The company said 11 Boeing 787 Dreamliners from a previously announced order and 12 jets ordered by merger partner First Choice Holidays will create 'one of the biggest 787 fleets with the earliest delivery dates in Europe.' TUI in December said it had outstanding orders for 65 Boeing aircraft, including 24 previously ordered planes. Source: AFX

VT plans to combine its shipbuilding business with that of BAE Systems PLC in line with UK government plans to make the industry more efficient and to prevent peaks and troughs in demand, AFX News reported. Delays by the Ministry of Defense (MoD) in giving the O.K. for work on a 3.5-3.9 bln stg contract to build two new aircraft carriers for the Royal Navy, which would form the bulk of the JV's future work, have put back an announcement. The MoD had been due to approve the start of manufacturing before the May local elections, but there is now speculation that it will not make an announcement until the new Prime Minister and leader of the Labour Party is decided at the end of next month.

Syria's oil minister announced the launch of tenders for oil and gas exploration in four blocs off the country's coast, state news agency Sana reported, AFX reported. The minister, speaking at a press conference, added that tenders were launched over two months ago for exploration in seven onshore blocs and that there was still time to submit bids. Source: AFX

The European Commission said it has cleared a proposed marine engine manufacturing joint venture between China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation, Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Wartsila Oyj, estimated to be worth around $101m. The new company will be named Quingdao Qiyao Wartsila MHI Linshan Marine Diesel Company. Production is set to start during the fourth quarter of 2008. The deal was examined under the EU's 'simplified' merger review procedure, for cases which the commission believes do not pose competition concerns. China Shipbuilding produces ships and is active in marine equipment engineering, designing and manufacturing. Source: AFX

Norwegian tanker company Jo Tankers has confirmed it has received a statement of objections from the European Commission regarding an antitrust probe into bulk liquid shipping companies. The response follows a confirmation from peer Odfjell ASA that the EU Commission had begun formal investigations of it in an antitrust probe. The commission said earlier it had issued formal cartel charges against 'a number of' bulk liquid shipping companies, without naming them. In 2003, the four major chemical tanker operators in Europe -- Odfjell, Stolt-Nielsen Jo Tankers and Tokyo Marine in London -- announced that antitrust authorities raided their offices in Norway, the Netherlands and the UK, investigating a possible cartel.

Oil Search Ltd said it has signed a cost sharing agreement (CSA) with its joint venture participants in the Hides, Angore and Juha fields, to study the opportunity to develop a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project. An estimated $60mis expected to be spent on the LNG project studies over the next year with Oil Search expected to fund a minimum 32 pct of the CSA. Oil Search said the joint venture partners have an option, up until the end of June 2007, to participate in the CSA studies and Oil Search is presently reviewing this option as part of assessing its overall direction in developing LNG. Source: AFX

The European Commission has approved investment aid of 500,000 eur for the Slovakian shipbuilding company Slovenske lodenice Komarno which operates shipyards on the Danube river in the south of Slovakia. The aid will form part of a 2 mln eur investment project to optimise the shipbuilding yard's layout and make its production processes less dependent on the water level of the Danube. The commission said that, under EC Treaty state aid rules, the investment is compatible with the single market and will not distort competition. EU competition commissioner Neelie Kroes said in a statement: 'The investment project will enhance the competitiveness of this yard. It complies with the stringent conditions applicable to investment aid in the shipbuilding sector.' Source: AFX

The European Commission has approved investment aid of 500,000 eur for the Slovakian shipbuilding company Slovenske lodenice Komarno which operates shipyards on the Danube river in the south of Slovakia. The aid will form part of a 2 mln eur investment project to optimize the shipbuilding yard's layout and make its production processes less dependent on the water level of the Danube. The commission said that, under EC Treaty state aid rules, the investment is compatible with the single market and will not distort competition. Source: AFX

Frontline Ltd said it has exercised options for an additional two Suezmax tankers, to be built by the Jiangsu Rongsheng Heavy Industries Group in China. These orders, Frontline said, relate to options secured last summer as part of a separate vessel order. The latest tankers, 156,000 deadweight tonne Suezmax newbuilds, will be delivered in April and June 2010, the firm said. Following this deal, Frontline will have six Suezmax tankers and four VLCC newbuilds on order. Source: AFX

Hamworthy PLC said it won orders to supply 8 LNG reliquefaction systems worth over 20 mln stg and said the deliveries will be made during 2008. Hamworthy said Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Co Ltd ordered equipment for seven LNG carriers, while Samsung Heavy Industries Ltd has ordered equipment for one vessel. Source: AFX News

According to Boerson, Avoe Maria Jurhagen A.P.Møller-Mærsk is still prepared to invest in new ships from China and is going to order 25 ships in the course of one year, wrote the newspaper China Business News according to the news agency AFX. It's said that the shipping line last week signed a deal to buy four container ships at the Dailan Shipbuilding Industry and 80 tons deadweight tug vessels at Quingdao Qianjin. According to AFX this makes the Danish shipping company the largest foreign buyer of ships from China.

Global Oceanic Carriers Ltd, the AIM-listed Greek dry bulk shipping company, said it is acquiring two more ships and is proposing to enter into new ship management agreements for its entire fleet.The company, which did not disclose the value of the deal nor disclose the terms of the management proposal, added it has appointed Jefferies International as its sole nominated adviser and broker with immediate effect. (Source: AFX)

Reports indicate that BAE Systems PLC and VT Group PLC have resumed talks to combine their shipbuilding operations The assets that are expected to be merged include BAE's yards at Barrow-in-Furness, Scotstoun and Govan on the Clyde, and VT's dock in Portsmouth. Source: AFX

The European Commission said it has approved a $5.5m regional investment aid package for the German shipyard Volkswerft Stralsund. The commission said the investment will enable the yard to build larger ships at competitive costs, thereby increasing the productivity of the yard without creating a result in a disproportionate capacity increase. The total investment will be $24.8m, with $5.5m paid as state aid, corresponding to 22.5 pct -- the maximum aid intensity allowed under the Framework on State aid to Shipbuilding. Germany said it would provide aid to Volkswerft Stralsund, situated on the Baltic coast in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, in August 2005. The region has a standard of living is below the EU average and serious unemployment.

According to reports, shipbuilding companies BAE Systems PLC and VT Group PLC are in talks about merging their naval shipbuilding businesses into a new UK shipbuilding giant. The statement said the discussions were entirely in line with UK government ambitions, and that sustaining shareholder value remained a key consideration. Ministers and firms are examining ways to bring the UK\'s shipbuilding operations together to eliminate peaks and troughs in order cycles and improve efficiency and job security. A VT spokesman said the joint venture was likely to involve the creation of a new company that VT and BAE would jointly own. There would likely be rationalisation of back office functions to eliminate duplication…